ALBUM REVIEW: Sickness Divine – Red Death

Thrash metal is doing really, really well at the moment. You might have read our article talking about the 10 bands currently reviving the scene by force, but if you haven’t, then you surely have at least heard of bands like POWER TRIP. Following in the Texan’s footsteps, and also the band that got the blessing from the band themselves, RED DEATH are making even more waves with their most recent record Sickness Divine. Hailing from the countries capital, the Washington thrashers have truly come into their own on their third outing, and prove they know the heritage of their sound as well.

It might sound like a weird statement, but it’s true. RED DEATH worship at the grounds that birthed the original thrash sound. Especially on Sickness Divine, the level of classic METALLICA and ANTHRAX worship is tangible, and then when you throw in a healthy dose of that classic early 80s punk and hardcore energy and attitude, you get a band keeping the spirit of thrash well and truly alive. The opening title track features one of many classically inspired musical passages, and it makes sense given that vocalist DHD is forward about his love for complex classic music. It gives off the same vibes as the classic albums of old, and it’s cool to have a band look backwards whilst pushing their sound forward.

RED DEATH ooze energy, and attitude, and on Sickness Divine they even go so far as to change their outlook to a more optimistic one. Compared to their previous two records, Sickness Divine is a far more positive outing, with Face the Pain and Path of Discipline both branding the classic hardcore sound and style proudly on their sleeves. Indeed, with tracks like these, the more classically inspired moments like Dreadful Perception and the raging finale of Ravage, RED DEATH truly prove themselves to be one of the most musically varied bands to come out of this thrash metal resurgence.

There is a confidence to Sickness Divine. Few bands of this ilk would have the bottle to give so much of their record away to non-thrash influences, but they forget that this is where the extremity and intensity of the genre is best exemplified. RED DEATH use pacing exceptionally well on Sickness Divine, and when the clean guitars give way to the eventually crack of distortion, it hits all the harder for it.

RED DEATH would’ve been one of the biggest names in thrash is Sickness Divine was released back in the 80s. This album is brimming with the same energies, the same intensity, and the same level of rampant creativity that was rife in the scene in the early years. Whilst still standing up as a modern thrash record worthy of being compared to contemporaries like ENFORCED, and HIGH COMMAND, and indeed POWER TRIP, RED DEATH set themselves apart by standing firmly with the biggest bands of the genre on a musical level. There is a healthy amount of every ingredient that made thrash the biggest genre on the planet for a time, and it is nourishing as it is destructive.

Rating: 8/10 

Sickness Divine is out now via Century Media Records.

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